Across the United States Missouri is known for its agricultural footprint. Missouri has the second most farms, 95,200, representing the state as a top provider of soybeans, beef cattle, and a multitude of other sources for our food supply chain. Due to the strategic position and top 10 low regulatory environment, Missouri has become a hotbed for AgTech, BioTech, and Animal Health startups, which all would qualify for QSBS industries. Examples of verticals in these industries include:
- Cultivated clean meat
- Smart-crop monitoring
- Drone farming
- Smart-livestock monitoring
- Autonomous farming machinery
- Smart-building and -equipment management
- Indoor vertical farming
- Pesticide alternatives
- Antibiotic alternatives
There are strategic venture capital and accelerator funds (e.g. Lewis & Clark AgriFood, Cultivation Capital, Yield Lab, and TechAccel), research centers, and corporations within and surrounding Missouri that have been driving investment and helping deploy resources into the state. For example, Benson Hill, a St. Louis-based startup that is a culminator and interpreter of plant data, raised a $150M Series D round led by Wheatsheaf Group and GV (formerly Google Ventures). Early on Benson Hill was invested in by the Missouri Technology Corporation, Missouri’s Venture Program. Missouri has also seen successful companies like unicorn Y-Combinator graduate, Equipment Share, and Payit.
This article does not constitute legal or tax advice. Please consult with your legal or tax advisor with respect to your particular circumstance.
